2011/06/20 by Ewine F. van Dishoeck, van Dishoeck, Ewine F., Ruud Visser +1
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Physics and Astronomy · #Astro and Planetary Science #Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies #Atmospheric Ozone and Climate #Chemical Physics (physics.chem-ph) #FOS: Physical sciences #Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics (astro-ph.IM) #astro-ph.IM #physics.chem-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1106.3917
Reposting from 2011, when this review chapter was first submitted to the editor. Manuscript updated according to some referee comments and with recent references. The book has now finally been printed: "Laboratory Astrochemistry: From Molecules through Nanoparticles to Grains", eds. S. Schlemmer, T. Giesen, H. Mutschke, and C. Jäger (Wiley-VCH); "Laboratory Astrochemistry: From Molecules through Nanoparticles to Grains", eds. S. Schlemmer, T. Giesen, H. Mutschke, and C. Jäger (Weinheim: Wiley-VCH), 2015, ISBN 978-3-527-40889-4, pp. 229-254
openalex publication_date 2011/06/20 · arxiv created 2015/02/09 · arxiv updated 2015/02/10 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Photodissociation is the dominant removal process of molecules in any region exposed to intense ultraviolet (UV) radiation. This includes diffuse and translucent interstellar clouds, dense photon-dominated regions, high velocity shocks, the surface layers of protoplanetary disks, and cometary and exoplanetary atmospheres. The rate of photodissociation depends on the cross sections for absorption into a range of excited electronic states, as well as on the intensity and shape of the radiation field at each position into the region of interest. Thus, an acccurate determination of the photodissociation rate of even a simple molecule like water or carbon monoxide involves many detailed considerations ranging from its electronic structure to its dissociation dynamics and the specifics of the radiation field that the molecule is exposed to. In this review chapter, each of these steps in determining photodissociation rates is discussed systematically and examples are provided.